Yesterday (2019)

User Review

• 

  BarneyNuttall

  8 / 10

  Yesterday is a wonderfully quaint romantic comedy that manages to avoid cliche with ease whilst grasping an, admittedly, niche concept with adherence.
  
  My expectations were low for this film. After the success of Bohemian Rhapsody and the rise in the music biopic, I figured that this would be a shameless cash grab with a gimmick. But, with Danny Boyle and Richard Curtis behind it, Yesterday proves itself to be a profoundly heartwarming film that owns its niche category.
  
  The film is mostly pretty funny and Himesh Patel provides a sympathetic performance that drives the emotional thrust of the story. While the film touches on the impact of fame and fortune, with Kate McKinnon playing a money-hungry manager, the emotional heart of the film is the romance.
  
  In fact, the romantic plot is my favourite part of the movie. The avoided cliche is a relief as we see a realist relationship. One where simply running to the airport (or in this case train station) won't simply make everything okay. I found myself truly caring about their relationship, something I find a struggle in typical romantic comedies.
  
  The film is speckled with some bumps in the long and winding road. Rocky is sometimes funny but his grossly inappropriate comments are mostly irritating and it appears that Rocky suffers from a case of FOMO as he pops up in scenes where he just shouldn't be there. The pacing can be a bit off, particularly towards the end, but the main concern is the film's believability. For a film that begins in realism, it slowly becomes farcical.
  
  But, this doesn't bother me. The film is too much fun! And, with the convincing and heartwarming central romance, Yesterday plays out harmoniously, making sure your troubles are truly so far away.

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